WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump bashed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and appeared to renew his threats over Greenland after a closed-door meeting with alliance chief Mark Rutte, during which he was expected to discuss possibly leaving the pivotal security bloc.
Trump’s outrage at NATO allies over their failure to join in his war against Iran had prompted fears he would seek to pull the US out of the nearly eight-decade-old alliance.
However, in his first remarks after the meeting, he simply reiterated his frustration.
“NATO WASN’T THERE WHEN WE NEEDED THEM, AND THEY WON’T BE THERE IF WE NEED THEM AGAIN,” he posted on Truth Social.
“REMEMBER GREENLAND, THAT BIG, POORLY RUN, PIECE OF ICE!!!” he added, without any further explanation.
Before Trump launched his war on Iran, his threat to seize the vast Arctic island from NATO ally Denmark was a key issue roiling the alliance.
Rutte — the former Dutch premier dubbed the “Trump whisperer” for his skill in flattering the mercurial US leader — entered the West Wing through a side gate and their meeting was held behind closed doors.
“It was a very frank, it was a very open discussion,” Rutte later told CNN in a televised interview.
Asked multiple times if Trump had said if he would leave the alliance, Rutte did not answer directly.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters ahead of the meeting that a possible withdrawal is “something the president has discussed, and I think it’s something the president will be discussing in a couple of hours with Secretary General Rutte.”
The Wall Street Journal meanwhile reported that Trump was alternatively looking at punishing some NATO members he believed were unhelpful during the conflict by moving US troops out of their countries.
The meeting came one day after the US and Iran agreed to a fragile two-week ceasefire.
The US president has branded NATO a “paper tiger” for refusing to lead efforts to open the strategic Strait of Hormuz and for limiting US forces from using bases on their territories.
Trump has lashed out at several leaders personally, lambasting UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer as “no Winston Churchill” and ridiculing Britain’s aircraft carriers as “toys.”
The plan reported by the Wall Street Journal would fall short of Trump’s oft-hinted threats to pull the US out of NATO entirely — a move for which he would need the approval of Congress.